Yet Another XCrazy Blog: Wonderful Wednesday Wrecipes

So my brain is a sweaty, humid mash of "I don't want to sit here and type in front of a steaming computer". So I am going to recycle a previous post, from over 2 years ago. And I'm banking on the fact that you weren't reading my blog that along ago, or you've forgotten all about it, and since it involves grilling, and it's summertime, you might even enjoy reliving the experience. Without further ado and more sweat popping out on my brow:

Grilled Pizza

1 lb ball of pizza dough at your local grocery (maybe near the deli dept or fresh cheese case)
1-1/2 to 2 cups Pizza sauce
8-oz package shredded mozzarella
1/3 cup each shredded parmesan & cheddar cheeses
toppings- I pre-saute’d my green peppers & onions on the stove because these pizzas don’t cook long enough to really cook toppings completely on the grill. I would suggest the same for mushrooms, unless you like crispy veggies on your pizzas. Pepperonis are good, but since these are thin crusted, DON’T OVER LOAD with toppings or it may all fall into the grill! Remember:LESS IS MORE.

I use my gas grill, and preheat on high while I work with the dough.
Divide ball of dough into quarters to make a nice single serving size pizza, and for ease of handling.
Cover a large baking sheet (or 2) with parchment and dribble about a teaspoon of olive oil over. Drop each blob of dough in the oil, smear a little on your fingertips, and stretch each piece of dough out as thin as you like. I hold it in the air and “steer” it in a circle, pulling at the thicker edges to thin it out and letting gravity do a lot of the stretching. Try to not let it tear or get so thin you get a hole. Lay it out flat on the oiled parchment, and repeat with each piece. You may have to let each piece rest while you move on to another because the dough likes to fight back and it needs to rest a minute for more stretching. Lay out more parchment on trays if necessary. The pizzas should be about 8” to 10” ovoids (sorry- these pizza are rather “rustic”!)
You’ll need about 1-1/2 to 2 cups of pizza sauce for 4 pizzas- this time I used Cento brand San Marzano “Arrabbiata” pasta sauce. It has a very homemade flavor. The label says it has hot peppers, but I can’t taste them. Pastene makes a canned “California Pizza Sauce” which is good. I don’t like a sweet, thick sauce- which is what Ragu Pizza Quick tastes like to me, but by all means, use what YOU like! I think Ragu makes a pizza sauce in a green labeled jar called just “Pizza Sauce”, and I like THAT too.
Place all your “fixings” on a tray, and bring that and your tray(s) of dough and some tongs, a spatula and a spoon for the sauce to the hot grill.

Turn the grill down to medium. Place each stretched piece of dough on the grill, using the tongs to pull out all the wrinkles & folds.
Don’t walk away! After a couple of minutes, pull up an edge to see how fast you’re cooking- you don’t want it to burn! When it’s starts to brown lightly, and get some bubbling on top, use the tongs and spatula to flip it over.

Watch this side as well,; you want to get a light brown crust going on both sides before you put on any toppings.

Flip back & forth a couple more times, placing the smooth side up. It should be a light golden brown both sides.
Spread about 1/3 to ½ cup of sauce over each pizza, then divide the cheese (I mix them together in a bowl first) and sprinkle over each pie, then finally your toppings.

Use the tongs so you don’t burn your hand reaching into the grill. At this point, peek underneath again, and rotate the pizzas to avoid charred spots.

Turn down the temp as necessary, even to low if your grill runs hot. The key at this point is cooking the bread thru, while not burning the bottom surface, and getting the cheese to melt. Drop the lid down to retain the heat if the temp seems Ok.
Let it bake for 3-4 minutes, lift the lid & check your progress. If the bottom is getting too brown, cover your upper grill surface with foil, and move the pies up there, and re-close the lid. This should cause the cheese to melt nicely, but not burn the bottom.